Le due facce del male

Perhaps the build-up of so many people telling me to check out Sting's movies for years may have raised the stakes a bit too high. I have only seen his villainous role in David Lynch's Dune and also watched bits and pieces of Brimstone and Treacle long time back. The prayer sequence never left my subconscious and it stayed with me including the soundtrack. I slept on this for years and finally got to watch this creepy BBC film during the lockdown. This is a film adaptation of Dennis Potter's controversial play and was banned from screen for many years. The story is provocative starring Sting as a diabolical con artist who becomes a caretaker for a middle-aged couple's daughter who is in coma. Things take a nasty turn and it just gets weirder, at times somewhat uncomfortable, but above all devilishly intriguing. To be fair, this film is not for everyone. Yet it is a shame not to give this a watch. Also, it boasts of a terrific soundtrack; I'm not a huge fan of Sting/Police but he has done a splendid work to contribute for the score. Overall, a twisted story, full of solid acting performances to complement the dark atmosphere.

Polite, mannered drifter Martin Taylor (Sting) charms his way into the home of Thomas Bates (Denholm Elliott), an outwardly upright publisher of religious text, his simple-minded, devout wife Norma (Joan Plowright) and their catatonic daughter Patricia (Suzanna Hamilton), whom he claims to know. Martin is allowed to stay in the home for a couple of days, cooks, cleans, "cares" for the daughter and tries to help the couple through their marital problems, but he's also the catalyst that forces some dark secrets out of the family closet.

Sting's character will either annoy or fascinate you as he exists solely as an enigma, representing angel or demon, or possibly both. Originally a play, this film never quite escapes the stage, but that only feeds into the claustrophobia of the stuffy household and guilt-ridden, lonely characters who inhabit it, and, all in all, it's an intriguing allegory on the nature of good and evil that has a lot to offer, including potent religious imagery, a knockout nightmare/fantasy sequence and a good score (plus songs by The Police) all driven home by excellent performances by the three leads and assured direction by Richard Loncraine.

Dennis Potter's script was previously filmed in 1976 for BBC (that version also starred the great Denholm Elliott).

I really enjoyed Denholm Elliott's performance in this film. He's so bitter and gnarled up that his outbursts are brilliant and quite funny. Obviously the sick manner of the story is the same as the Play for Today, it's delivered well if not as successful as the TV version, although I've not seen that version for a long time so maybe the memory cheats a little.

Nothing wrong with Stings performance in this film but he he just didn't have the screen presence for me to completely convince.

I enjoyed this film more than I expected and it's good to see it get a repeat here in the UK on London Live channel. 7/10.

I saw this when it was fresh on video and it is weird. Like TRACK 29 by Nicolas Roeg is weird. Both films have screenplays by the irrepressibly strange (God bless him) Dennis Potter; This one has 2 heavyweights of the British theater, Denholm Elliot and Joan Plowright, and a thoroughly convincing STING as ...what? An evil sprite? The devil himself? watch it and try to come to your own conclusion; that is the pleasure of this odd little gem.

Richard Loncraine has style to burn and he fills the screen with expertly crafted compositions and he has a nice tendency to use slightly wide-angle lenses to make everyday objects take on a malevolent aspect; he knows how to shoot STING, in order to make him look sinister, that is for sure. Bravo.

Over the years I have shown this to many different people and it always captivates them and holds their attention from the first frame to the last. I would have to say this is my favorite of anything Dennis Potter has written to hit the cinema screens,so far. He is a difficult artist do do justice to, but BRIMSTONE & TREACLE delivers the goods,in spades. Its darkly funny and also thoroughly squirm-inducing in places. The acting is all first rate; Denholm Elliot is magnificent as the repressed and domineering husband; he projects a marvelous sense of twitchy hostility and discomfort; watching him agonize is one of the films strange pleasures. And Sting is fantastic. I think a lot of people here on the IMDb are being unfair to him because of his pop stardom, but I think he delivers an excellent performance, full of sly menace and sinister charm.

33. BRIMSTONE AND TREACLE (thriller-drama, 1982) Martin (Sting) befriends middle-aged bookkeeper Tom (Denholm Elliott). Martin cons his way into his house by passing himself as friend to his daughter. Daughter Patricia has been left a mute and bedridden for 3 years after a mysterious car accident. Though Tom is suspicious of Martin's exact motives, his wife is beguiled by Martin's charm. But what they don't know is that Martin is sexually abusing their defenseless and disabled daughter.

Critique: Part fairy tale, part religious parable, this creepy, atmospheric film is highlighted by a wickedly perverse turn by Sting (lead singer of rock group 'The Police'). What makes his character such a bizarre figure is that his motives are unknown, his appetites unresolved.

I think Martin is just a thief, passing himself as anyone's friend just to have a place to stay. A sort of pickpocket. He's also a sexual deviant who doesn't mind how he gets it, either from an invalid or an old woman. The film portrays him as an avenging angel-type, brought into this deeply secular home as a purger of sins.

Interesting direction by Richard Loncraine (is this his film debut?) who works from a play adapted by Dennis Potter, whose own sexually dubious works are to be questioned.

'The Police', along with 'The Go-Gos' provided the 'hip' soundtrack.